'The Mighty Ducks' TV Show Cast Adds Lauren Graham As Lead
The Mighty Ducks are headed to Disney+, and they've found their lead. The Mighty Ducks TV series cast just added Lauren Graham as its star, playing the mother of a kid who's been cut from the Mighty Ducks team. Young actor Brady Noon has also been cast in the role of Graham's son. The Disney+ series is a continuation of the film franchise that spawned three movies, one animated TV series, and a real-world National Hockey League hockey team.Lauren Graham, who you might remember from Gilmore Girls, where she played one of the Gilmore Girls, and also Bad Santa, where she played a woman sexually aroused by Santa Claus, is your Mighty Ducks TV series lead. Graham and Brady Noon are the first officially announced cast members of the series, which continues the story of the hockey team years after the events of the movies. Noon recently appeared in Good Boys. I don't have all my notes in front of me, but I believe he was one of the titular good boys.
The series is set in present-day Minnesota, where "the Mighty Ducks have evolved from scrappy underdogs to an ultra-competitive, powerhouse youth hockey team. After 12-year-old Evan (Noon) is unceremoniously cut from the Ducks, he and his mom Alex (Graham) set out to build their own ragtag team of misfits to challenge the cutthroat, win-at-all-costs culture of competitive youth sports." This synopsis makes it sound like the Mighty Ducks are the bad guys in this scenario, which is certainly an interesting choice.
We've heard through various sources that original Mighty Ducks star Emilio Estevez is being sought for the series. Estevez's character, Gordon Bombay, a drunk man who was forced to coach children, is said to be part of the script for the show, but there's still no official announcement of Estevez's involvement.
Steve Brill, the original creator, writer, and executive producer of the three Mighty Ducks movies, is back as co-creator and executive producer of the new series. Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa are co-creators and will serve as showrunners. James Griffiths and Michael Spiller will serve as executive producers with Griffiths directing. Lauren Graham is co-executive producer. George Heller and Brad Petrigala of Brillstein Entertainment Partners and Jordan Kerner also serve as non-writing executive producers.
The 10-episode original series begins production this month in Vancouver and is slated to premiere later this year on Disney+. That's a pretty quick turnaround time, all things considered.